Army Staff Sgt. Eddie Peoples Honored for Stopping Bank Robbery

June 3rd, 2011, 10:07 AM

Army Staff Sgt. Eddie Peoples was home on leave expecting peace and relaxation. Deciding to take his two young sons fishing, the combat veteran had to bring a little combat to a bank robber on the way. The six-foot, 250-pound soldier could not resist setting a 34-year-old crook straight when it comes to using a gun.

Sgt. Peoples, his wife, and his two young sons had stopped by the bank on their way to go fishing. In came a man with a black hand gun and ordered the tellers to give him their cash. At first, the two boys thought it was a joke, and they giggled. This caused their father to quickly tuck the boys behind some chairs.

After Rogers collected the cash and started to leave the bank, Peoples told his sons to stay where they were while he went to get the "bad guy." That is what he and his wife had told their 4 and 6-year-old boys their father did for a living, getting "bad guys." The large and muscular soldier then ran out to his van to block Rogers get-a-way car. This almost seems like a movie scene.

Once blocked, the gunman jumped from his car and made the mistake of sticking his gun in the face of Eddie Peoples. The soldier's military martial arts training just took over. Peoples grabbed the man's wrist and removed the gun. When police arrived, they say a large black man was holding a gun and money bag in the air. The white gunman lay face down on the hot pavement. This gunman's mistake was believing he could intimidate this soldier.

Once Peoples returned inside the bank, his sons ran up and wanted to know if he caught the bad guy. "Yes," he said, and everyone in the bank broke out with applause for the daring hero. Applause rang out once again when the Sarasota County Sheriff Tom Knight awarded Staff Sgt. Eddie Peoples a certificate of recognition at a press conference for his velour. He should have been given a medal and a reward by the bank. Being a bank, they are probably too stingy.

Some may hope these boys gain a more realistic view of life as they get older. It will be a let-down when they realise that many people get killed trying to be a hero. Eddie Peoples was very lucky this criminal was not crazy enough to pull the trigger instead of trying intimidation.